


Longevity

by sagittarianpocky



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Canon-Typical Violence, Dad is a Complete Asshole, Descent into Madness, Emotional/Psychological Abuse, Eventual Happy Ending, Eventual relationship, F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Light Comedy Though So It's Not All Dark, Platonic Relationships, Plot Twists, Trauma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:20:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,626
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26407873
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sagittarianpocky/pseuds/sagittarianpocky
Summary: Valeria Griffin and her weapons, Alex and Ava Cutter, are forced by her father, Anderson Griffin, to attend the DWMA. At first, she believes she won't enjoy it. However, as time goes on, she realizes just how much she loves the idea of not being able to return back home. Why? Her father is not the man he's convinced everyone he is. When her father realizes that he can no longer control his daughter's thoughts and actions, madness begins to take hold, causing Valeria's now positive life to do a complete 180.
Relationships: Death the Kid/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 5





	1. Prologue: A New Trio - Forced to Join the DWMA?

**Author's Note:**

> Hi!  
> As noted in the tags, this is my first Soul Eater fanfiction! It's also a slight AU, so expect some OOC-ness and for plot events to be... well, different. I'm really just writing this for fun, and hoping that other people will enjoy it as well. I'll update it as time allows.

“Dad, I’m not going here.”

He didn’t answer me. He never answered me when I complained about something he was doing. He’d just stand there and remain silent or some crap like that. He’d stare right at me with this gaze of disappointment that was enough to either scare me or make me feel like the worst person on Earth. Sometimes, it ended up being both.

“Dad, this building is way too big.”

No response.

“Can my weapons go back to human form now?”

Nothing.

“Where are we going?”

It took a moment, but he responded, “We’re seeing Lord Death.”

I stopped dead in my tracks. First off, I’d been brought to this really weird city against my will. My dad basically ordered me to pack my things and get moving. My weapons, Alex and Ava, had to do the exact same thing. Our families forced us to move to Death City after we’d been given a chance to attend the DWMA. Now, I was about to speak to a literal Shinigami?

“You didn’t tell me I’d have to talk to him!”

He wasn’t waiting for me to catch up. “Follow me. You’re smart. You should have realized that we’d be speaking to the school’s headmaster.”

I furrowed my eyebrows and mumbled back, “Whatever.”

“Don’t _whatever_ me, Valeria. You aren’t twelve.”

I sighed and continued to follow him. The DWMA as a building was honestly very nice. There were high, ached ceilings, big staircases, large windows, candles, and not to mention the grounds around the academy. It was also dead silent besides the sound of our footsteps. Some staff members would appear every now and then, and my dad seemed to be familiar with most of them.

Eventually, we reached this door. It was large and marked rather boldly as the ‘Death Room,’ which didn’t help ease my nerves at all. My dad opened the door without batting an eyelash. On the other side was a place that I wasn’t expecting at all. It looked like a different universe, really. Given that Lord Death was there, it probably was.

The ground was yellow besides the path under my feet, and the sky was blue. Clouds floated by slowly, and crosses stuck out from the ground in the distance. In front of me was a path of red gates that looked pretty damn close to guillotines.

Alex, one of the knives braced on my thigh, stated, “Yo, Mr. Griffin, this place is real weird.”

Ava, the other knife, quicky hissed, “Shut it! Do you wanna look like an idiot in front of a Shinigami?”

My dad stopped and looked backwards. “Both of you – quiet down and return to human form.”

They listened and appeared at my sides. Alex yawned and stretched, while Ava dusted off her pants. My dad didn’t look very pleased. Well, he never looked pleased, but sometimes he looked less pleased than normal. Ava had dressed nicely in some black pants and a sweater, while Alex was in jeans and one of his favorite hoodies. On top of that, his hair was a complete mess. Ava at least had hers in a side braid.

“Alex, did I not tell you to at least look presentable?”

Ava and I both eyed each other. That was impossible for Alex.

“I mean, I think I look pretty good for suddenly packing up and moving here.”

“You look like you’ve just rolled out of bed.”

“I mean, I kinda did.” Silence. Alex scowled. “All my clothes are in boxes! What did you expect me to do, dude? Materialize them out of thin air?” 

I stared ahead, knowing the conversation wasn’t going to go anywhere. Ava looked annoyed, but resorted to examining her fingernails.

My dad, on the other hand, dropped the argument. “Let’s go. We can’t keep Lord Death waiting.”

As we continued on, Alex whispered, “Do you think he’s gonna be scary?”

I blinked. “Who? My dad or Lord Death?”

Ava snickered at the comment while Alex responded, “Lord Death, dummy. I mean, look, these things are guillotines! Why are we just walking under them?”

I shrugged. “I think it’s pretty nice looking.”

Ava added, “He’s a Shinigami. I’m expecting him to at least be a little scary.”

We were approaching this raised platform in the middle of the room. I could see it, but I couldn’t make out what was on it. My dad looked back and ordered, “I want all three of you on your best behavior. Am I understood?”

The tone in his voice made all three of us freeze. I hated that tone and that tone specifically. It was so cold. It was like he was implying that he’d hurt you if you didn’t listen. Which, of course, he would.

I looked down at the ground, beginning to crack my knuckles absentmindedly. “I understand.”

When the guillotines stopped, we arrived at the platform. Of course, standing there was Lord Death. He was taller than I was expecting, but his mask wasn’t at all what I’d imagined. I mean, I don’t even know what I thought he was going to be. It looked like the mask had been taken right from Spirit Halloween.

There was a large mirror behind him, and beside that mirror was a man. He was smoking a cigarette and staring off into the distance. Tall, gray hair, lab coat, and was that a screw in his head?

“Hiya, hiya, Mr. Griffin! It’s been a long time! How are you doing today?”

The only thing I could do was blink. How could a Shinigami’s voice be that peppy and friendly? Alex was about to make a smart-ass comment about it until I nudged his side.

“I’m doing fine, Lord Death. Indeed, it has been a while. I’ve brought my daughter as requested.”

We just stood there as Lord Death peered around my dad to get a good look at us. “Hello, hello! It’s so very nice to meet all of you! I’ve heard so much about you!”

The three of us just stood there like idiots.

Death continued, “A little bit nervous, are we?” 

My dad urged, “How about the three of you introduce yourselves?”

“Right,” I responded, doing my best to not choke up. “I’m Valeria Griffin. These are my weapons, Alex and Ava Cutter.”

Alex, in true idiot fashion, followed up with, “Yup! We’re daggers, and we have the coolest meister ever!”

Ava sighed before adding, “Yeah, we’re daggers alright. It’s nice to meet you too, Lord Death.”

The Shinigami tilted his head. “I see. Another young meister with a weapon duo! How wonderful!”

My dad, of course, seemed irked by the statement. “Another?”

“Now, now, no need to be alarmed by that.” Of course, my dad was pissed that I wasn’t a one of a kind meister. “It’ll be good for her! She can learn techniques and skills that she normally wouldn’t come across!”

Crossing his arms, my dad muttered, “I suppose that’s a good point.”

Again, I looked at the man standing by the mirror. He was listening to the conversation, sure, but I could tell that my dad was annoying him. I mean, even I was curious about the fact that there were other meisters with two weapons. My dad never told me that anyone other than me had that ability. I was almost excited to meet people that were similar to me. My dad never told me anything except for what he wanted me to hear.

“Now, everybody come sit! We have much to discuss!”

I didn’t notice that a table suddenly appeared, along with tons of paperwork.

I was attending the DWMA whether I liked it or not.

I was attending the DWMA because if I didn’t, my father would disown me.

Good grief.


	2. The Trio Meets Everyone - New Friends Already?

“Damn, this is one big ass staircase!”

I mean, yes, it definitely was. It seemed like hundreds of stairs, but students were just strolling up like it was normal. The only reason Alex was so surprised was because he’d refused to walk anywhere the last time we came to the academy. He said he was too tired, so I had to carry him in his weapon form the entire way there.

I just started walking. Students were chatting amongst themselves on their way up while my heart was in my throat. I wasn’t sure that I remembered where to go once I entered the building. It didn’t have a room number and I didn’t see a directory when I’d come before. I only knew the room as ‘Class Crescent Moon.’

 _Moon_. Mom was still watching over me.

Right when I reached the top of the staircase, one of my boots clipped a stair. I thought my life was over and I was going to be the embarrassment of the century until Ava caught me and pulled me back.

“Be careful.” Her voice was soft and monotone as always. “You nervous?”

I straightened out my skirt and made sure my boot wasn’t scuffed. Sheepishly, I replied, “I mean, yeah. I think I forgot where the classroom is, and I don’t know anyone.”

“Don’t worry about it!” Alex swung his arm around my shoulder and pulled me toward him, making me squeak. “We’ll just ask! Plus, you’ll have no problem making friends when I’m around!”

Ava grumbled, “Oh, we sure won’t.”

Once inside, I had no idea what to do. There were students everywhere, and the academy was much more overwhelming than it’d been the week before. It was loud, full, and confusing. Slowly, I moved in the direction that I remembered going.

“Dude, this is so crazy,” Alex stated, looking around as we walked up a flight of stairs. He stopped and pointed down a hallway. “Yo, what’s that?”

Ava and I both stopped and looked in the same direction. There were lots of people gathered around a board on the wall. Of course, my curiosity got the best of me. My weapons followed right behind me.

It was basically a huge bulletin board filled with what seemed to be missions. Some spaces were empty, and others were marked as claimed or in progress.

Alex got close and started looking over them. “Didn’t Lord Death say we’d have to do these?”

Ava didn’t look up from her phone. “I think so. It’s like homework or something.”

Alex blinked. “You’re telling me we get to beat up bad guys as homework?”

I got closer and read them too. “I think they’re extracurriculars.”

“So, it’s like a sports club?”

I shook my head. “I don’t think it’s an extracurricular like _that_.”

Alex ran a hand through his hair and winced when it got caught in a knot toward the end. “Whatever! Beating up bad guys is dope either way.”

Ava suddenly said, “We need to go to homeroom.”

I jumped and looked around. “Crap! I don’t know where to go!”

“Excuse me, are you lost?”

I turned to see a girl with blonde pigtails. Her outfit was almost like a uniform, but not quite. “Uh, yeah. I’m new.”

“Really?” Her green eyes were wide and curious. “What class are you in?”

Alex and Ava were still talking about the missions. “Class Crescent Moon.”

She smiled and held her hand out. “That’s my class, too! By the way, my name’s Maka.”

Shyly, I shook her hand. “My name is Valeria. Most people just… call me Val.”

“Yo, who’s that?”

Alex’s sudden interruption startled Maka slightly. I sighed and said, “Sorry, these are my weapons. He’s Alex, and she’s Ava. This is Maka. She’s in our class.”

Ava added, “Sorry, he can be annoying. It’s nice to meet you, though.”

“Yup! Totally cool to meet you, Maka!”

Oddly, the siblings didn’t throw her off. She just offered, “I can show you guys to homeroom if you’d like!”

I smiled. “Please do. I’m so confused.”

Maka and I chatted a little as we walked to class. She wasn’t too talkative, really. However, she did eventually ask, “By the way, how’d you end up with two weapons?”

I shrugged. “We’ve been friends forever. Since they’re siblings they’re a pair. Our parents kind of forced us to be partners.”

“Oh.” I wasn’t sure if I’d been too vague or not. “I was just wondering because we have another meister in our class with two weapons.”

“I remember Lord Death mentioning that,” I murmured, pressing a finger to my lips.

“I mean, of course he did! The meister is actually his son.”

My eyes widened. “Lord Death has a son?”

Alex jumped in and said, “Dude, seriously? That’s so cool! Like, imagine being a Grim Reaper.”

Ava added, “It sounds like a lot of work.”

Maka giggled at them. “Yup! His weapons are siblings just like you guys, too!”

I smiled. “That’s so cool. I didn’t know there were other people like me.”

Maka’s smile was so warm. “Of course there are, silly!”

After a bit more walking, we arrived at the classroom. My nerves spiked again. It looked like a lecture hall, which was a big change from what I was used to. Alex nudged me and said, “Dude, are you gonna walk or what?”

Maka stepped closer to me. “You really are nervous, aren’t you?”

I felt a blush dust my face. “A little, yeah. It’s so much different from what I’m used to.”

Ava placed a hand on my shoulder. “You’ll be fine.”

“She’s right!” Maka looked back at the doorway. “Our professor can be a little weird, but you can sit next to me. I'm sure that'll help!”

“I can?”

She nodded. She was about to say something else when I heard another female voice say, “Hi, Maka!”

This girl was much taller with long, black hair. She stopped, looked at me, and asked, “Who’s this?”

Maka replied, “She’s a new student in our class.”

“New?” The girl smiled at me. “It’s nice to meet you! My name is Tsubaki.”

I smiled back, shifting weight between my feet. “My name is Valeria, but you can just call me Val.”

Maka added, “She has double weapons just like Kid!”

I assumed Kid must’ve been Lord Death’s son. Alex, of course, introduced himself promptly and proudly. Ava was her usual self.

Tsubaki asked, “So, what type of weapons do you use?”

“Double daggers,” I responded, which interested both of them. I was about to go in depth when a bell went off, indicating class was about to start.

“Maka, it’s really okay if I sit next to you, right?”

She nodded. “Yup! You’ll be sitting near Tsubaki too, so there’s no need to be nervous.”

Tsubaki added, “We’ll make sure you get used to the academy in no time.”

I smiled and nodded, finally convincing myself to step into the classroom. As soon as I walked in, I caught the familiar aroma of cigarette smoke. In a chair at the front was the man I’d seen leaning against the mirror. He looked at me and said, “There you are. I see you’ve made some friends already.”

Maka said, “This is Professor Stein. Like I said, he looks pretty scary, but he’s not.”

The professor rotated his chair toward me. “You and your weapons, come here.”

Maka signaled for me to go, and her and Tsubaki promised to save me a seat. I slowly approached Stein and said, “Hello.”

He pointed his cigarette in my direction and said, “You’re Valeria griffin, and then you’re Alex Cutter, correct?”

“Yup! That’s correct, sir!” Of course, he spoke over me. Alex had to add, “Also, is that a screw in your head? That’s mad cool.”

It actually made Stein chuckle. “You’re pretty energetic. Now, you’re Ava Cutter, correct?”

Ava nodded. “Yeah. Sorry about him, by the way. He has no filter.”

Stein smiled slightly. “It’s fine. How are the three of you doing?”

Again, I was shifting weight between my feet. “I’m nervous, honestly.”

Alex said, “I just wanna go hunt the bad guys on the bulletin board.”

Ava said, “I want to sit down.”

We were lucky that the professor found our dynamic entertaining. “You three will have to introduce yourselves when class starts. After that, you can sit wherever you’d like. I’m not picky about seating.”

Alex seemed excited about that. I didn’t understand why, given that he didn’t know anyone. We had to stand there for a few more minutes until Stein got homeroom started. I could feel people staring at me in the silence of the room. It had gotten so quiet so fast, and I didn’t know if they listened to Stein out of respect, fear, or both.

Back home, we didn’t have teachers with a screw in their head that smoked inside.

“I’m sure you all have noticed, but we have a few new students joining us today.” He eyed me and prompted, “Care to introduce yourselves?”

Alex just about ran to the center of the room and announced, “Yo! I’m Alex.”

He pointed to me and said, “This is my totally cool meister.”

Then he pointed at Ava and said, “and this is my totally cool sister!”

Ava said, “Sorry about him. I’m Ava.”

It was my turn, and the only reason I could speak was because Maka smiled at me. I said, “Um, my name is Valeria, but you can just call me Val. It’s nice to meet everyone.”

From the left side of the room, a loud voice erupted, “Huh? Another person with two weapons?!”

The source was a blue haired boy. He basically jumped over his desk down onto the main floor. Alex said, “Yo, dude, I like your spirit!”

“My name is the totally awesome Black*Star, and I challenge you to a duel!”

I stepped back and stammered, “Me?”

“Black*Star!” The voice belonged to Tsubaki. “This is her first day! Can’t you let her get used to the academy first?”

“No way!” I could tell that he wasn’t mean or anything, but he had way too much energy. He pointed at me and said, “Anyone who comes to this class needs to have their skills tested by me!”

“Black*Star, Tsubaki has a good point.” Stein took a hit from his cigarette. "We don’t want to scare her on her first day. You should leave the duels for later.”

Black*Star made an exasperated noise and crossed his arms. “Fine! Then we’re just gonna have to duel tomorrow!”

Stein sighed. “Don’t worry. He’s always like this. You three can take a seat.”

I nodded and rather quickly went to sit by Maka and Tsubaki. Ava sat one row above me where it was empty, and surprisingly enough, Alex went to sit with Black*Star and a white-haired boy.

Tsubaki was quick to say, “I am so sorry about Black*Star. I happen to be his weapon, and sometimes he can be a lot to handle.”

“It’s fine, I guess. I know he wasn’t being mean.”

I got distracted when the classroom door opened. In walked two girls and one boy. I knew the boy was Lord Death’s son. The tux, the Shinigami accents, and the hair? There was no mistaking it.

Stein said, “You’re late.”

The taller, light brown-haired girl said, “I know! Kid wanted to make sure the house was clean before we left. We tried telling him he’d be late but he wouldn’t listen!”

“I told you that I have to check the picture frames every time we leave!”

The professor stretched his neck as he said, “Just take a seat.”

Kid went to sit next to the other guys, while two girls have to sit next to us. The taller one sat down to my left before looking at me and saying, “Oh, my God.”

I blinked at her. “Um, yeah?”

“First, have we like, met before?” She was literally leaning forward to get a good look at my face. “Second, your makeup is literally perfect. And your outfit? Super cute.”

I blushed and said, “Thank you. I’m new, actually. My name is Valeria, but uh, you can just call me Val.”

“Aw, I missed your introduction?” She crossed her arms and leaned back. “Stupid kid and his picture frames. Anyways, I’m Liz, and this is my little sister, Patty.”

Patty seemed to be messing with a coloring book. She looked up and grinned at me. “Hi, Val!”

I smiled back at her. “Hi.”

“Hey.” We went quiet and looked down at professor Stein. He continued, “If you won’t be quiet, I’ll have to lodge another scalpel in the wall again.”

I blinked. _Again?_

It remained quiet for the majority of homeroom. Apparently, the Especially Advantaged Talent class went over materials during that time, which I wasn’t used to either. I’d end up back in this room for Soul Studies or something like that. Given the material on the blackboard, I was so behind.

When Stein finally let us talk, I said, “Um, Maka?”

“Hm?”

“You uh, study a lot, right?”

She nodded. “Yup! I’m at the top of the class.”

I played with one of the rings on my fingers. “Is there a way you could help me catch up on what I’ve missed?”

Her face lit up. “Sure! Do you want to come over tonight?”

“I mean, yeah, if that’s okay.”

I got distracted when the guys came over. Alex said, “Yo, Val, these guys are awesome! He and I are gonna fight later today!”

Ava said, “You’re gonna _what?_ ”

Of course, he and Black*Star were going to fight. I asked, “You’re going to fight without me?”

“Yeah? Dude, it’s called a fistfight for a reason.”

I rolled my eyes. “Just don’t get hurt.”

Black*Star grinned. “I’m gonna kill him!”

Tsubaki pleaded, “Please don’t kill her weapon!”

Black*Star just laughed, and so did Alex. The white-haired kid trudged up to me and said, “So you’re the new girl, huh? That’s pretty cool.”

I smiled at him. “Thank you.”

“Name’s Soul,” he continued. “Anyone who’s cool with my meister is cool with me.”

“Where’s this new student I’ve been hearing about?”

I looked in the direction of the question and locked eyes with Kid. It was silent for about five seconds before he said, “Oh, wow.”

I blinked at him. “Um, yes?”

“Sorry if this sounds a bit weird, but are you aware that your face is perfectly symmetrical?”

Liz sighed. “Here we go.”

The statement itself was enough to turn my cheeks pink. “I, um, it is?”

He continued, walking closer to me. “Even your makeup is symmetrical. It’s lovely.”

One thing I hadn’t considered putting on my first day checklist was Lord Death’s son flirting with me. The only thing I could manage to say was, “Thank you so much.”

Liz snapped, “Kid, the least you could do is ask for her name before you start calling her symmetrical! Have we like, not taught you anything?”

Kid put his hand up. “I was getting there, Liz. What _would_ your name be?”

“It’s Valeria, but um, most people just call me Val.”

“Valeria, hm? Absolutely lovely.” He paused for a second before saying, “I am Death the Kid, and it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

“Hey, hey, _hey!_ You trying to make moves on my meister or something?”

Kid looked at Alex up and down, but seemed focused on his hair. “You, on the other hand, are completely unsymmetrical. You should think about doing something about your hair.”

That comment made Ava and I laugh. Alex looked at us in disbelief and threw back, “You’re one to talk. Isn’t-“

“ _Don’t talk about that!_ ”

The twins completely stopped the conversation. I mean, it was true that Kid only had white stripes on half his hair. Despite the twins’ interruption, Kid put two and two together. “No, you’re right. My hair is unsymmetrical! It’s _garbage!_ ”

“Hey,” I said, which made Kid freeze. “I think your hair is nice. Don’t listen to Alex. He’s just messing with you.”

I was surprised I’d managed to calm him down. He must’ve had a thing about symmetry. “You really think so?”

I nodded. “Yeah, of course I do.”

I mean, if he complimented me, it was only fair that I complimented him, right? I’d gotten sufficient payback too, since his face was covered in this faint blush.

I could hear Ava giggling, and then Alex started up too. Eventually, so did the twins.

Maka chimed in, “Hey, everyone!”

Finally, she’d gotten the attention off me. She continued, “Do you guys want to have dinner at my place tonight?”

Soul’s eyes widened. “Huh? You didn’t ask me about this!”

She giggled. “It’s fine! It’ll be a good way for Val to get to know everyone.”

Soul, defeated, said, “Fine, but not asking me was so uncool.”

Patty sang, “Yay! Dinner party, dinner party!”

Liz added, “I’m totally down for that.”

The guys seemed lost, but went with it. Which, of course, was usual guy behavior. Maka turned to me and said, “You can come over early and study before dinner!”

“You mean, _right_ after school?”

She nodded.

It was my first day and I’d already been invited to a dinner party.

Maybe the academy wasn’t going to be as bad as I thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if this was, um, a bit long. There are so many characters to work with in Soul Eater! :>


	3. Dad's First Call - And a Dinner Party?

The first day wasn’t nearly as bad as I thought it’d be. Luckily, I didn’t have to fight during dueling time for the Crescent Moon Class. I was only supposed to watch and understand what I’d have to do. The class fought out on the school grounds in this kind of wooded area, and Stein just leaned against a tree the entire time and watched. I’d ask him questions from time to time, and he’d answer.

Tsubaki was nice enough to give me a little tour of the building when I had a break in classes, too. The cafeteria was huge and had so many different kinds of food – even sushi, which I ended up buying without a second thought. The nurse’s office was called the dispensary, she told me all the details about the extracurricular office and how to sign up for missions, there were a whole bunch of tutoring rooms that looked like something I’d love to try, a running track, a dojo, a shooting range, and so much more. My personal favorite ended up being the library. It had three floors to it, and it was so quiet and peaceful. There were thousands upon thousands of books in here, and even though Tsubaki said I’d only have access to some, I didn’t care. I’d pretty much found a place to relax during the big gap between my classes.

When I was leaving, I managed to catch the end of Black*Star and Alex’s little fistfight. Alex was actually doing a pretty good job until Black*Star hit him with a pretty vicious right hook. Alex fell completely on his ass, and Black*Star took that time to gloat about winning. Ava, who’d also been watching, looked pretty embarrassed. She’d have to hear all about it on the way back to our house.

It was a lot to process, really. I’d already followed Soul and Maka back to their little apartment, and the only way I could describe the interior was busy. It was bright and it had everything going on, which was completely different from what I was used to. Posters everywhere, mismatched furniture, and lots of colors. There was a table in the kitchen that Maka and I sat at, and I had to prepare to absorb everything she was going to throw at me.

Which, turned out, to be a hell of a lot of notes.

She smiled and said, “You probably won’t have time to copy all of these, so it’s fine if you take pictures of everything!”

I rubbed my eyes, looking at the notebook in front of me that was basically full. I wouldn’t be sleeping for the next few days. “Um, yeah, I might take you up on that offer.”

“I can start going over basic stuff now if you want.”

“That’d be great.”

It took almost an hour to go over the basic concepts from all the units. Soul Studies included a lot of different things. My dad had already told me about most of them. Soul resonance, soul force, soul perception, all of that. I’d actually already figured out soul resonance and soul perception from my dad’s “teaching,” but I could never grasp soul force no matter how hard I tried. From the looks of it, Stein also taught fighting techniques as well, which Maka took extensive notes on.

Maka wanted to get ready before everyone began coming over, so she left me to take pictures of her notes. I was lucky that my phone had a good amount of storage, because I stopped counting pages at fifty.

Once I finished, I sighed and leaned back in the chair. It was pretty quiet in the apartment besides some music coming from Soul’s room.

Until, of course, my phone rang. I wanted to shoot myself when I saw the caller ID.

I picked up and said, “Hello.”

“Valeria! It’s nice to see that you finally picked up.”

It was my dad. I’d been ignoring his calls for days now. “Sorry. I’ve been busy.”

“As you should be.” The response made my eye twitch. “Have you learned anything new?”

“I’m working on it?”

“Working on it? His voice changed slightly. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“I’m studying with a friend right now.”

Silence, then, “A friend?”

Of course, he sounded annoyed by that. “She’s at the top of the class.”

“Are you still at the academy, then?”

I would’ve lied, but he always found out. Telling the truth was always the less-worse option. “I’m at her house.”

Another pause. “At her house? Is there a reason why you couldn’t study at home in your room?”

I rolled my eyes. “She invited me over. Was I supposed to say no?”

“The library would’ve been a much more acceptable option.”

I leaned back in the chair. “I can’t do anything right, can I?”

“Don’t get an attitude with me. The issue is obvious, Valeria!” All I could manage to do was sigh. At least this time, he couldn’t threaten me physically. “I take my eyes off you for a week and you’ve already begun hanging out at other people’s houses?”

“I told you she invited me over to study!”

“Don’t raise your voice at me, child!” That was enough to make me flinch. “What else are you doing? I know teenagers. You don’t just study together.”

I clenched my jaw. “She invited me over for dinner, okay! Is that what you want to know?”

“Oh, a dinner party?”

“Yeah. So?”

More silence. “How disappointing. You should at least ask your father before attending parties.”

“Why would I ask if you’d just say _no?_ ”

“I don’t want to hear it!” I knew that if Maka or Soul were in the room, they’d be able to hear my dad even though he wasn’t on speaker. “Hanging out with people is a waste of time! Plus, other teenagers are a horrible influence. Do you remember how I got to be where I am? By working constantly, not goofing off!”

I really, really just wanted him to shut up. “Whatever.”

“How many times have I told you not to use that word? It’s immature!”

I didn’t answer. “I have to go study. Nice talking to you.”

It was the first time I’d ever hung up the phone on him. Normally, I wouldn’t have dared. The apartment I had was academy provided, though. He wasn’t paying for it, so really, he couldn’t do anything to me anymore. He called three more times, and each time I declined the call. I muttered, “Just go away already.”

“What was that about?”

I hadn’t noticed that Soul opened his bedroom door. He looked mildly concerned, and I wasn’t sure if he’d been listening to the conversation or not. I must’ve been louder than I thought. “Oh, um, it’s nothing. Just my dad.”

“Nothing, huh?” He started looking through the cabinets in the kitchenette. “Your dad doesn’t sound too cool.”

I put my phone in my bag and started looking over notes again. “No, he really isn’t.”

He’d found a carton of some kind and started drinking from it. “You wanna talk about it?”

“Huh?” The question caught me completely off guard. “Oh, no. It’s fine. I’m used to it. Thank you, though.”

“You know, Maka’s dad isn’t too cool either, so maybe she could help you out.”

I looked back at him. “Really?”

“Yeah.” He’d basically chugged whatever he was drinking. “She’ll tell you about it if you ask.”

Suddenly, her bedroom door opened. “Tell me about what?”

“Yo, guess what? Val has a pretty uncool dad too.”

Maka tilted her head. “Really?”

Once again, I said, “Uh, yeah, but I promise it’s fine! I’m used to it.”

“You and I both,” she answered, walking over to the table. “Did you finish taking pictures of the notes?”

I closed the notebook. “Oh, yeah. I’ll get started on them tonight.”

“Great!” She looked around and stated, “Now we just need ingredients for dinner.”

“Ingredients?” It took a few seconds for Soul to register the meaning of the sentence. “Wait, crap, we’re going to the store?”

“Don’t worry! We’ll have enough time.” He was already gone before she could finish. She looked at me and asked, “Do you want to come with us?”

“I mean, if it’s okay.”

“Of course it is! Plus, we’ll show you the biggest grocery store in town.”

I smiled at her and slid my backpack on again. “Alright. I’ll come.”

The grocery store ended up being more hectic than I imagined. It was so full, first of all, and Soul was running around like a kid. Maka was just trying to find ingredients for a curry rice recipe, while every five minutes Soul would be calling her name and doing something dumb. Really, he was just messing with her. He was trying to buy every snack known to man, too. There were so many products that I’d never seen back home, and people were dressed much differently. Like, at home, I’d always stand out. I tried to dress nicely and my clothes were all dark. In Death City, everyone was that way.

Watching her and Soul attempt to cook had me on the edge of laughing the entire time. Maka did the bulk of it while Soul ate the snack he’d bought, and every now and then, he’d try to sneak a taste of some of what she was cooking. Maka scolded him a few times before just chopping him, which got him to back off. After that, she told him to go find a big fold out table. I watched him pull it from the closet, open it, and just look around.

“Maka, how many chairs do we need?”

She hummed for a second before answering, “I think ten.”

“Ten?!”

Hesitantly, I said, “Um, I can help if you want.”

“Nah, it’s cool,” Soul replied, going to look around the apartment. “You keep studying. You can just use that chair or something.”

Soul started dragging all different kinds of seats out. Like, living room chairs, chairs from the closet and the bedroom, and even some bean bag chairs. Every now and then, he’d mutter a curse or two. Maka, on the other hand, was still calmly making dinner.

“So, what’s your dad like?”

Maka didn’t even turn around to ask me that. “My dad?”

“Yeah.”

I looked at the floor. “He’s, um, my dad. I don’t really know how to explain.”

“I understand. It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it.” She started getting dishes out. “My dad actually works at the DWMA. He’s a death scythe.”

I turned completely around. “A death scythe? Really?”

“Yup. It sounds cool, I know, but he really isn’t that great.”

My heart sped up. I was genuinely hoping she hadn’t gone through the same thing as me. “He isn’t that great?”

“See, he cheated on my mom a while back.” I exhaled. It was bad, yes, but she luckily hadn’t gone through something like I did. “He tries to make it up to me, he really does, but he always ends up being so creepy.”

“I’m so sorry to hear that.”

She sent me a smile over her shoulder. “It’s fine! Other than that, he’s pretty strong.”

“I can imagine.” I looked at the clock. It was almost six. “My dad is just, I guess, weird. He always wanted my weapons and I to be strong like him. He’d make us train for hours every day.”

“Hours? Really?”

I nodded. “Yeah. We’d go to school, come back, and training came before homework. If I didn’t do something well enough, he’d make me do it over and over again, even on weekends.”

"Weekends?” Soul was still messing with furniture. “That’s so uncool. Your old man sounds pretty strict.”

_Strict?_ That was one word for it. “Yeah, he really is. I needed to have good grades, too.”

“What about your mom?”

Maka meant well by the question, but it hurt. “She was the opposite. She was always so nice.”

Something registered on her face, but a rather loud knock on the door caught her attention. Upon her opening it, all I heard was, “Yahoo - the totally awesome Black*Star is here and ready to eat!”

Tsubaki followed in close behind. “Hello, Maka, Soul, and hello, Val!

I smiled at her, then stood up as I watched Maka carrying dishes to the table. “Wait, I can help.”

The table was eventually set up neatly with plates and different types of utensils at each chair, and the food was set in the middle. I’d never had curry rice before, but damn, did it smell good.

Suddenly, Kid, Liz, and Patty entered. There was already so much going on between the Soul and Black*Star fooling around, and the girls trying to organize everything. Kid announced, “Good evening, everyone. Valeria, lovely to see you again.”

I smiled at him. “Hey.”

Liz almost immediately ran up to me. “Hey, girl! How was your first day?”

“It was a lot better than I expected, actually.” I watched as Soul and Black*Star started teasing with Kid. Judging by everyone else, it must’ve been normal. “I’ve been here getting notes from Maka.”

“Notes?” She laughed. “You don’t need notes! That stuff is totally easy. What you need to do is check out the mall! We totally should go shopping together.”

“Sis, don’t you have a C?”

I blinked at Patty’s random, seemingly innocent question. She just started laughing at it, while Liz was completely caught off guard. “What about it? It’s not like it matters!”

“I just want to make sure I’m caught up,” I answered, trying not to laugh. “But, going shopping sounds fun.”

Finally, my weapons entered with Alex yelling, “Yo! What it do, everyone?”

Ava didn’t seem too pleased, as usual. “Sorry we’re late. We got lost.”

“It’s cool.” Soul shut the door. “Go sit down! Have some food.”

To be completely honest, I’d never been to a dinner party before. Like, I’d celebrated holidays with family before, but that was about it. Alex and Black*Star were, of course, the loudest people at the table. Soul definitely encouraged them, much to Maka’s dismay, but he was at least a but quieter. The conversation would just constantly move in a loop. School stuff, trends on social media, and random stories. Ava even started socializing instead of looking at her own phone. It was a lot to get used to, but I had to admit, it was a lot of fun.

As the night went on, the trio of general stupidity went from talking loudly to playing music as well. It bounced between rock and rap music, which I luckily didn’t mind. What really made it special was the dancing and occasional freestyling. Freestyling was something that I was very used to from my old school, and the three of them were doing a pretty good job at making me laugh. At one point, they’d even made a tiny mosh pit. Alex would even record them dancing and lip-syncing like idiots. Kid sat and watched them, and I could tell that he was slightly confused by their antics. The rest of the girls thought it was pretty entertaining, as well.

Really, it was the happiest I’d seen Alex in a long time.

By the end of the night, Liz had already set up a time for us to go to the mall over the weekend. She tried getting Ava to come along, but she wasn’t too sure. I’d also managed to get invited to the group’s basketball hangouts at a court down the street. Alex would be the one playing, of course, but it was another thing I’d never been able to do.

Plus, they’d started calling me a friend.

Which I didn’t expect to happen already.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This has started out kinda slow but... I promise that action is coming soon :>


	4. Remedial Lesson - The Shy Girl is Fierce?

Remedial lessons. I had no idea they’d be a thing, but they were, and I had to do one. 

I had to call Lord Death about it when I was in the library. Apparently, I had a lot of soul collecting to catch up on.

For my third day at the academy, this was _not_ the kind of homework I was expecting.

_“You see, there happen to be reports of a Kishin egg wandering around the outskirts of the city! Seeing that you need to begin your extracurriculars, I think this would be a wonderful remedial lesson for you!”_

_“Remedial lesson?”_

_“Tell me, have you ever collected a soul with your weapons before?”_

_I nodded. “My dad used to make me do it when his friends heard rumors about one. I’ve only done it a few times, though.”_

_“Wonderful! I’m sure you’ll do just fine. You’ll need to report to me once you’re finished!”_

_I smiled at him. “Alright, I will.”_

“Dude, this is so cool! I can’t believe we’re hunting bad guys!”

“I don’t know, I’d rather be sleeping.”

Having talking daggers sheathed to my thighs was always a trip. “Shush. Both of you. We’re close.”

Having soul perception abilities at least made this lesson easier. It was easy to sense a Kishin egg. It was like a really heavy presence was coming from a certain direction, and it’d get stronger as you got closer. Most people with a sixth sense would usually back off when they felt it. I mean, think about it – when people sense ghosts, that usually happens too. Unless you’re a medium or a ghost hunter, of course. So, when you’re trained to kill these things, the feeling doesn’t bother you much.

“Val, you get so scary when you’re ready to fight. It’s always so dope to see.”

I hissed, “Shush.”

Suddenly, I heard a voice echo from down the street. It was a male voice, and if I didn’t know any better, I would’ve guessed that he was drunk. “Hello, hello! I can smell you. You sure smell good.”

Alex said, “Smell us? Bro, that’s such a lie. Souls don’t smell like shit.”

Ava barked, “Shut up!”

The Kishin egg was moving. “Closer, and closer, and closer. Are you a girl?”

I didn’t say anything, and my weapons were silent. I looked upwards and saw a low hanging rooftop, and quickly jumped on top of it to get a clear view.

I could see him now. He looked strange. He was a man, yes, but his body was disformed. His arms were longer than they should’ve been, and his nails were sharp. His clothes were torn into shreds. In his hand was a singular knife. He sniffed the air and said, “Oh, yes! You’re a girl!”

I was completely still. He was looking around, and his eyes were dark. “Are you pretty? Pretty, pretty girl. Come on out! Let me see!”

It was an invitation alright. Quickly, I sped down, and cut him straight across the chest. Just as quickly, I distanced myself to some stairs father down the street, giving myself an elevation advantage to scope him out more.

“Ow!” He scratched at his chest before noticing me. “ _Oh_ , you are cute! Come closer, girly. Your soul will taste so good between my teeth!”

The way he sang the phrase made me grimace. I collected myself and said, “Your soul belongs to my weapons.”

He pressed his hands against his cheeks. “Oh, that attitude just makes you _cuter!_ ”

Alex stated, “Okay, this guy’s mad weird. Like, look at him. He’s all fucked up. And why’s he being all flirty?”

I said to them, “You two ready?”

Ava muttered, “Let’s get this over with. I wanna go to bed.”

Without another word, I charged at him. In a matter of seconds, I’d managed to cut him in multiple different places, as well as slice his wrist so he dropped his weapon. I had to stop to kick the blade away, which almost let him catch me. I’d forgotten about his nails, which would’ve easily cut my face down to the muscle.

As he spun around in circles, he whined, “What’s your deal, honey? Why can’t I get you?”

With that, I jumped and kicked him in the jaw, which sent him flying into a building. Alex cheered at it, and I landed gently on the ground.

The Kishin egg groaned as it got up. “You shouldn’t hit me, pretty girl. I’ll hit you back!”

He charged at me again, and I kept dodging his attacks. Once I got the upper hand, I started slicing at him again. Down his back, across his arms, his sides, and even his legs. If I hadn’t learned to be so fast, I wasn’t sure how I’d be able to have the skills I did.

When I distanced myself to breathe, the weird guy looked at himself. “What’s with this? You have a blood kink, pretty girl?”

I scowled. “I don’t think that’s any of your business, Kishin scum.”

“Oh, oh, _oh!_ ” He sounded like a lovestruck teenage boy. “Your voice is so pretty! No need to curse like that.”

I just stood there, watching the blood run down his body and pool on the street. “Hey, in case you didn’t know, you’re bleeding out.”

The Kishin egg shook his head. “You just love playing hard to get.”

Ava remarked, “God, he’s dumber than Alex.”

Alex threw back, “What? Hey! Don’t compare me to him!”

“Hey, you two ready? This guy is annoying me.”

Alex quit his arguing and said, “Let’s do this shit!”

Ava simply said, “I call dibs on the soul this time.”

“Alright,” I said, getting into position. “Let’s go, soul resonance!”

Let me tell you, soul resonance is a really weird feeling. It’s warm, but also overwhelming at the same time. It took me forever to get the hang of it, especially with two weapons. We were lucky that we’d been friends forever and they were siblings, or else it would’ve been impossible. Once I was ready, the two daggers began to glow purple. I threw them and shouted, “Twelve Houses Spin, go!”

The Twelve Houses Spin was inspired by my mom. It’s based on the houses of the zodiac. Basically, each knife spins six times, hitting the target twelve times. They strike at vital spots, especially when the target is already injured. When done, they both return to me at the same time.

Apparently, as my dad said, it’s a sight to see. He said it clearly resembles the house chart when you see it from above. You can’t tell what your own resonance move looks like, really. You’re too usually overwhelmed to know. It happens, and then it’s over.

So, the next thing I knew, the Kishin egg was kneeling, trying to catch his breath. He was essentially soaked in blood. “Ow, ow, ow, I changed my mind! You’re a monster!”

I stepped closer. “Me? That’s kind of insulting.”

“Monster! Monster! Monster!”

I was over it, so I sped forward and basically decapitated the Kishin egg. He died, and his body disintegrated, leaving his red soul behind.

My weapons returned back to human form, and Alex said, “Whew! You really rocked his shit!”

I shrugged. “It was boring.”

Ava held the soul in her hand and said, “These are always so weird to eat.”

Alex, in his usual big brother fashion, cheered, “Go, go, go! Swallow it whole!”

Ava ate it, then muttered, “You’re so weird. Quit making a big deal out of it.”

Alex just squealed. “Man! Watching you eat a soul makes me so proud! My cute little sis!”

“Get off me, weirdo!”

As the two squabbled, I picked up on a familiar soul. I hadn’t noticed it before, but I guess that was because I wasn’t looking for it. I just said, “Wait.”

“What?” Alex was silent for a second and continued, “Dude, don’t just look off into the dark like that. It’s creepy.”

“There’s someone nearby.”

“Huh?” He looked around frantically. “Quit it with the cryptic shit, dude! Let’s go home.”

I shook my head. “It’s fine. It’s someone I know.”

Alex just stared at me.

I looked around, until I noticed a familiar trio under a streetlight. “Look, see? It’s Kid.”

“What?” he squinted. “You mean the guy that was flirting with you?”

I waved dismissively. “He was just being nice. I think he has a thing about symmetry. Come on.”

Quickly, I walked down the street. Kid, Liz, and Patty met me halfway.

I just said, “Hey!”

“Hey. Sorry if watching you seemed creepy in any way,” Kid started, straightening out his blazer. “Father told me to monitor the remedial lesson.”

I tilted my head. “He did? I hope I did okay."

The siblings were behind me bickering about something again. Liz answered, “Are you kidding? You totally knocked the crap out of that guy! Even when he was being all creepy like that.”

Patty just laughed. “You cut him up! You cut him up!”

“I agree.” Kid looked off down the street. “His comments were a bit unsettling.”

Liz patted his head. “He means he was totally gonna get involved.”

Kid argued, “I was _not!_ I was simply concerned as anyone else would be.”

“Don’t worry, I appreciate it.” The softness of the statement seemed to catch all three of them off guard. “He was really creepy, but I can handle myself.”

“So I’ve seen.” I blinked as Kid materialized a skateboard out of thin air. “I’ll be sure to tell father you passed with flying colors.”

I smiled at him. “That’s a relief. Thank you.”

“Hey, Val!” I looked at Alex, who had his sister in a friendly chokehold. “Can we go home now? Ava’s crabby!”

“I'm not!” She started punching at him. “You’re just one big annoying prick!”

Sheepishly, I turned back to Kid. “I should get going. I’ll see you guys tomorrow, though!”

Liz said, “Bye! Don’t let any other creepy guys bother you!”

Patty just energetically said, “Bye-bye, Val!”

As I walked away, I could almost feel Kid looking at me. He was a teenager, yeah, but the whole Grim Reaper thing was no joke. I’d used soul perception while talking to him, and his soul was orange with white stripes. It was a color I’d never seen before.

The siblings were quick to follow me, still bickering as they followed behind me. They bickered the entire way home, actually. It was normal. Alex, an extreme extrovert, and Ava, and extreme introvert, always had their moments. I just hoped to God they’d quiet down before I had to report to Lord Death.  
  



End file.
